Articles in Category: 'Teacher Performance Pay'

The Legislature sent its first bill of the year to Gov. Rick Scott Wednesday, when the House joined the Senate in passing the hotly contested SB 736, a measure basing teacher pay on performance and assessments instead of seniority and tenure.

Flanked by legislative leaders at a press conference after the vote was taken, Scott praised the passage of the bill. “This will help attract and retain the best teachers,” said Scott, adding that it was part of his plan to increase jobs in the Sunshine State.

Teachers, parents and students came to Tallahassee to protest a bill that would implement performance pay for public school teachers. As House representatives debated their version of the legislation Monday, a few protestors took time to tell Sunshine State News why they oppose the measure.

Gov. Charlie Crist signed three measures into law Wednesday that had the backing of leading Republicans in Florida -- but he still did not answer whether he would sign or veto teacher performance pay legislation.

As whispers continued to grow that Gov. Charlie Crist plans to veto the teacher performance pay measure, business leaders met at the Capitol on Tuesday to lobby the governor to be bold, to strike a blow for education excellence and to sign the legislation into law.

“We know that there has been vocal opposition, but we want the governor to know teachers, educators, and business leaders support him and this good bill,” said Marshall Criser, the chair of the Florida Council of 100’s Pre-K-14 Education Committee.

The state's chief financial officer handles money matters in Florida, but as the campaign for the position starts to heat up, it appears that teacher performance pay will be an issue in the coming election, too.

Senate President Jeff Atwater, R-North Palm Beach, the favorite to win the Republican CFO nomination, was a strong supporter of the teacher performance pay plan that passed the Senate earlier in the session and the House early Friday morning.

More than 10,000 phone calls. More than 15,000 e-mails and letters. They mostly tell Gov. Charlie Crist the same thing – veto SB 6.

Since Republican lawmakers first proposed legislation in early March that would link teacher pay to student performance on standardized exams, teachers have gone on the offensive -- writing, calling, showing up at legislative meetings, all telling lawmakers that a test can't measure their effectiveness in the classroom.